Frequently Asked Questions 

 

Dose 

Reconstruction 

 

Energy Employees 

Occupational Illness 

Compensation Program Act 
nuclear weapons production activities for 

the Department of Energy or its 

contractors. Dose reconstruction is a 

widely accepted practice used within the 

scientific community and emerged as a 

discipline in the late 1970s. 

Q2. Why does NIOSH conduct dose 

reconstructions? 

 

Under the Energy Employees 

Occupational Illness Compensation 

Program Act (the Act), NIOSH is 

responsible for conducting dose 

reconstructions to assist the Department 

of Labor in determining the likelihood 

that an energy worker’s cancer was 

caused by his/her workplace exposure to 

radiation. 

NOTE: According to the National Cancer 

Institute, roughly 4 out of every 10 

Americans will develop cancer in their 

lifetime. Primary causes of cancer 

appear to be smoking, diet, and genetic 

factors. 

Q3. How accurate is dose 

reconstruction? 

 

NIOSH dose reconstructions are 

sufficiently accurate and provide the 

Department of Labor with the information 

necessary to reach the correct 

compensation decision.

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include film badge readings, medical 

x-rays, urine sample data, and incident 

reports. NIOSH may also use co-worker 

data, environmental exposure records, 

process records, and technical 

documents when little or no personal 

exposure data is available. 

Q5. How can NIOSH complete a dose 

reconstruction if the energy worker 

was never monitored? 

 

NIOSH can use exposure information 

found in co-worker data, site profiles, 

environmental exposure records, process 

records, and medical records to estimate 

radiation exposure when a worker’s 

records are insufficient. This is a 

common scientific practice accepted 

among dose reconstruction experts and 

is permitted by the Act. 

Q6. How long does it take to complete 

a dose reconstruction? 

It is difficult to identify an exact 

timeframe for completing dose 

reconstructions. Each claim is unique 

and requires individual attention. In 

addition, NIOSH wants to ensure that it 

accounts for all possible radiation 

exposure the worker might have 

received. Therefore, the process may 

take several months to years to 

complete. 

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energy worker’s cancer was “at least as 

likely as not” caused by workplace 

exposure to radiation. The Department 

of Labor uses this determination to assist 

in making its final compensation 

decision. 

Under the Act, the Department of Labor 

must determine that there was at least a 

50% possibility that the energy worker’s 

cancer was caused by radiation exposure 

in the workplace in order to award 

compensation. 

 

Q8. What happens if NIOSH cannot 

complete a dose reconstruction? 

 

Under the Act, NIOSH is allowed to 

recommend adding a class of workers to 

the Special Exposure Cohort (SEC) when 

it cannot complete a dose reconstruction. 

Contact NIOSH’s SEC Counselor for more 

information. 

 

 

 

 

Contact NIOSH for more information 

about the dose reconstruction process 

under the Energy Employees 

Occupational Illness Compensation 

Program Act. 

 Web site: www.cdc.gov/niosh/ocas 

Toll-free: 1-800-356-4674 

Direct: 513-533-6800 

Email: ocas@cdc.gov 

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